Norris Perne & French LLP MI Sells 4,571 Shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL)

Norris Perne & French LLP MI cut its holdings in shares of Ecolab Inc. (NYSE:ECL) by 3.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 134,982 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 4,571 shares during the quarter. Ecolab makes up about 2.2% of Norris Perne & French LLP MI’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Norris Perne & French LLP MI’s holdings in Ecolab were worth $31,167,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. increased its position in Ecolab by 2,805.1% in the fourth quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 38,492 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $7,635,000 after purchasing an additional 37,167 shares during the last quarter. Carnegie Capital Asset Management LLC grew its position in Ecolab by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Carnegie Capital Asset Management LLC now owns 111,563 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $22,129,000 after acquiring an additional 2,051 shares in the last quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC bought a new stake in Ecolab during the fourth quarter worth approximately $749,000. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership raised its position in Ecolab by 526.2% during the fourth quarter. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership now owns 56,959 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $11,298,000 after purchasing an additional 47,863 shares during the period. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ecolab by 12.5% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 87,402 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $17,338,000 after purchasing an additional 9,695 shares during the last quarter. 74.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on ECL shares. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $269.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 21st. Raymond James lifted their price objective on shares of Ecolab from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Ecolab from $232.00 to $243.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Ecolab in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Mizuho raised Ecolab from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $216.00 to $260.00 in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ecolab presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $239.56.

Insider Activity

In other Ecolab news, Director David Maclennan bought 650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $227.37 per share, for a total transaction of $147,790.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 17,111 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,890,528.07. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director Arthur J. Higgins sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.52, for a total transaction of $1,023,840.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 25,548 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,812,680.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director David Maclennan bought 650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $227.37 per share, with a total value of $147,790.50. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 17,111 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,890,528.07. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

Ecolab Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:ECL traded down $1.55 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $238.00. 1,806,035 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,213,723. The firm has a market cap of $67.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.07, a P/E/G ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 0.99. Ecolab Inc. has a 1 year low of $156.72 and a 1 year high of $245.93. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $233.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $219.27.

Ecolab (NYSE:ECL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $3.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.74 billion. Ecolab had a net margin of 10.01% and a return on equity of 20.56%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.88 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Ecolab Inc. will post 6.59 EPS for the current year.

Ecolab Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 18th will be paid a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 18th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.96%. Ecolab’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.22%.

Ecolab Profile

Ecolab Inc provides water, hygiene, and infection prevention solutions and services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Global Industrial; Global Institutional & Specialty; and Global Healthcare & Life Sciences. The Global Industrial segment offers water treatment and process applications, and cleaning and sanitizing solutions to manufacturing, food and beverage processing, transportation, chemical, metals and mining, power generation, pulp and paper, commercial laundry, petroleum, refining, and petrochemical industries.